Marine's search reunites him with war dog

For seven months, a young Marine and his best friend slept side by side in the middle of a war zone.

After the deployment in Afghanistan ended, 22-year-old Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Dylan Bogue wasn’t sure if he would see his friend and colleague again, but that didn’t stop him from searching.

“The first time I tried contacting anybody was about seven months after the deployment,” Bogue said. “I was told he was going to go on another deployment but never did ... his PTSD was too bad.”

Nearly two years after the deployment, Bogue finally found his friend Moxie, the bomb-sniffing dog that had been by Bogue’s side throughout the seven-month tour. The two were reunited in Boston on Aug. 13 where Moxie served with the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority after retiring from the Marine Corps.

According to Bogue, Moxie, the black Labrador, stood out among the other dogs around him.

“I met him first about two weeks into the dog handling course,” he said. “He was just happy, very playful, jumping up and down in the cage, and I was thinking you know, I got the crazy dog.”

The pair soon developed a bond through training and then deployed for their first combat tour together, Bogue said.

“We cleared villages and went down our routes,” he said. “We ran the dog in front of us searching for bombs. If he found a bomb, he would go through the precautionary steps. I would notice what was going on and inform my squad leader. We do what we got to do and keep on going.”

While in Afghanistan, Bogue said Moxie had also become a friend to most of the Marines.

“It was good for the whole platoon,” he said. “Everybody loves him. Anytime somebody was feeling down, they would come out, pet him, take him out, play with him — gave everybody a little break. The dog kind of helped provide comfort. He provided a good bit of comfort for everybody.”

According to Bogue, his preliminary searches for Moxie often yielded little to no results, so he turned to the Internet for help.

“I didn’t hear anything for a while and the case got brought back up on social media,” he said. “What actually happened was I got on Facebook and got in touch with a lady out of

California and she was helping me out.”

That lady was Frankie Franks, a 64-year-old animal and veterans advocate from Santa Paula, Calif.

“Over Memorial Day weekend, I saw a picture of (Bogue) and Moxie that he had posted,” said Franks. “... He expressed how much he wanted to find out where Moxie was.”

Franks said she began corresponding with Bogue to help find Moxie. After several of weeks of searching and sharing of posts through Facebook, Bogue said he finally caught a break.

“I called the training company that we went to for the training course hoping to get some information on him,” he said. “The kennel master that was in charge ... he went to an air force base in Texas and got the information on where Moxie was.”

The cost of bringing Moxie home from Boston would have been costly but Bogue said he didn’t have to pay out-of-pocket for the trip due to the cooperation of the police officers at the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and the Wounded Warrior Project.

“Wounded Warrior paid for the flights ... ,” he said. “Everything was pretty much paid for.”

Franks said this was her first time assisting a veteran to reunite with his dog.

“I was pawstruck,” she said. “It was very emotional ... I was amazed at how the collaboration was to make this happen.”

Franks hopes she will be able to help other veterans reunite with their service dogs.

“I’m doing this because for me, it’s the right thing to do,” she said. “To bring awareness for our military, our fire and police, the first responders, and how dogs, animals can be essential to our lives beyond just being pets.”

For Bogue, having Moxie back is like having his brother back from war.

“He’s the same as any other infantryman,” he said. “He’s the guy right beside you. He’s doing the same thing as anybody, going through the exact same thing.”

Bogue said Moxie is adapting well to life as a retired Marine and has even made some new friends in his Jacksonville home.

“I’ve got two other pitbulls and an Australian shepherd dog and one cat,” he said. “(Moxie's) pretty relaxed now and I’m trying to get him out of that mindset. We play with him out in the backyard. We’ve got a big fence so we let him play out there.”

Providing a home

Individuals interested in providing former military working dogs with a home will be able to take part in an adoption program through the Department of Defense’s Military Working Dog Adoption Program.

According to the government’s website, dogs that are up for adoption are stationed at the Lackland Air Force Base near San Antonio, Texas. Individuals or families who are interested can begin the adoption process by submitting an application and will be kept up to date with the process by the department through a series of emails and phone calls. Individuals should expect a 12-month waiting period for screening and administrative work before being able to bring the dog home.

Dogs that are up for adoption include young dogs that have failed to meet training standards, older dogs that have completed their service as well as dogs that have been medically retired for service, according to the website.

For more information on how to adopt a former military working dog, visit lackland.af.mil/units/341stmwd/index.asp or contact Richard Dostale at 210-671-5874 or at mwd.adoptions@us.af.mil.

Adelina Colbert is a reporter for the Jacksonville Daily News. She can be reached at Adelina.colbert@JDNews.com.